Driving Impressions

Driving Impressions

In case you didn’t know, sports cars have returned to the Southern Sales & Service showrooms, specifically the one at Mazda. Equipped with Skyactiv technology and an all-new, smaller, stiffer and lighter chassis, we couldn’t wait to sample the Mazda MX5– a car reputed to deliver one of the purest driving experiences on the planet!

In today’s market, a seven-seater vehicle has largely become out of reach for most people, even from non-luxury brands. Toyota’s all-new Rush is now one of the most affordable people movers on the market and it’s laden with more plusses than you think. We visited their Barataria showroom to take a test drive!

Following our weekend with the Porsche Panamera in Fort Lauderdale, it was time for our sports car tour to Daytona Beach and back! My new ride for the next few days would be the sexy new Porsche 718 Boxster. I was handed the keys to the GTS version, which brings the best performance options coupled with the most popular options for everyday use– all at a price that is lower than if you ordered them separately.

With tickets and hotel booked to a seminar in Fort Lauderdale, I also took the opportunity to contact Porsche Centre Trinidad and Porsche Latin America to see if I could review a few of their cars while out on this trip. I drafted my itinerary for the seven-day trip and was absolutely over the moon when they said that I could have both the Porsche Panamera 4 E-Hybrid and the Porsche Boxster GTS (feature here) for a few days each to drive and evaluate!

As I walked up to the freshly detailed red Mazda CX-3 at the dealership, its metallic paint, which looked burgundy in the shade, shone a bright red as the mid-morning sunlight hit it. Styled in Mazda’s KODO design language, the CX-3 presents interesting lines, contours and surfaces at nearly any angle. Although it was not the top-flight trim level or the 4WD version, I adjusted the tilt/telescoping steering and settled into the driver’s seat with intense curiosity.

Many of the Mazda 3 and CX-5 owners really love their cars and this new model seeks to be a combination of the two. I also know that Mazda takes pride in infusing their cars with their Zoom-Zoom dynamic driving DNA, or as Mazda likes to call it– Jinba-ittai. This Japanese concept conveys the idea of horse and rider, or in this case, metaphorised as car and driver in perfect harmony. But could that actually happen with a crossover vehicle? Especially with its taller ride height and, presumably, more weight than a sedan?